Page 22 - Turkey Tour 2018 27th February (compiled)_Classical

Its productive soil was a continuing source of wealth; but its importance as a central mart appears to have
diminished from the time of the invasion of Asia by Alexander. The massive temple of Cybele still bears
witness in its fragmentary remains to the wealth and architectural skill of the people that raised it. On the
north side of the acropolis, overlooking the valley of the Hermus, is a theatre near 400 feet in diameter,
attached to a stadium of about 1000. There are still considerable remains of the ancient city at Sert-Kalessi.
Travellers describe the appearance of the locality as that of complete solitude
Sardis is of special interest to the student of Herodotus and Xenophon, for there Artaphernes, the brother of
Darius, lived, and from there Xerxes invaded Greece and Cyrus marched against his brother Artaxerxes. It
was moreover one of the oldest and most important cities of Asia Minor, and until 549 BC, the capital of the
kingdom of Lydia. It stood on the northern slope of Mt. Tmolus; its acropolis occupied one of the spurs of the
mountain. At the base flowed the river Pactolus which served as a moat, rendering the city practically
impregnable. Through the failure to watch, however, the
acropolis had been successfully scaled in 549 BC by a
Median soldier, and in 218 by a Cretan (compare Rev.
3:2,3).

Because of its strength during the Persian period, the
satraps here made their homes. However, the city was
burned by the Ionians in 501 BC, but it was quickly rebuilt
and regained its importance. In 334 BC it surrendered to
Alexander the Great who gave it independence, but its
period of independence was brief, for 12 years later in 322
BC it was taken by Antigonus. In 301 BC, it fell into the
possession of the Seleucidan kings who made it the
residence of their governor. It became free again in 190
BC, when it formed a part of the empire of Pergamos, and
later of the Roman province of Asia.
In 17 AD, when it was destroyed by an earthquake, the Roman emperor Tiberius remitted the taxes of the
people and rebuilt the city, and in his honor the citizens of that and of neighboring towns erected a large
monument, but Sardis never recovered its former importance (Rev. 3:12). Again in 295 AD, after the
Roman province of Asia was broken up, Sardis became the capital of Lydia. The city continued to flourish
until 1402, when it was so completely destroyed by Tamerlane that it was never rebuilt. Among the ruins
there now stands a small village called Sert, a corruption of its ancient name. The ruins may be reached by
rail from Smyrna, on the way to Philadelphia.

The ancient city was noted for its fruits and wool, and for its temple of the goddess Cybele, whose worship
resembled that of Diana of Ephesus. Its wealth was also partly due to the gold which was found in the sand
of the river Pactolus, and it was here that gold and silver coins were first struck. During the Roman period its
coins formed a beautiful series, and are found in abundance by the peasants who till the surrounding fields.

Christ’s letter to Sardis – Rev. 3:1-6

And unto the angel of the ecclesia in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God,
and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.
Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works
perfect before God.

Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt